Monday, 13 February 2012

Kanna might not have the guts to confess to Kaito, but it seems that Tetsurou has no such qualms about letting his friend in on the secret - whether it's for his own gain or out of a sense of loyalty for Kaito is, however, another question entirely.

Still, any such worries are soon put on the back burner as our group of friends run into a bit of good fortune in the form of a bunch of tickets for a holiday in Okinawa, much to the excitement of Ichika in particular. Yes, that effectively means that it's beach episode time for Ano Natsu de Matteru, but there's much more to it than simply bikinis and beachballs.

Things really get shaken up when Kaito runs into a childhood friend of his named Kaori - a childhood friend who he'd also promised to marry in that impetuous way that kids do. It's a revelation that sets a cat amongst the pigeons as far as Kanna and Ichika are concerned, while Kaori's friend Arisawa does a similar number on poor Mio thanks to her instant interest in Tetsurou. As if an afternoon of this wasn't hardship enough for both guys and girls, of course Remon can't resist playing the latest in her series of devilish games by inviting the two girls to join them for filming - if it's part of a plan to get everyone concerned to confess their actual feelings, then it certainly seems well-poised to work come the end of this week's episode.

All I can really say about this latest instalment of Ano Natsu de Matteru is that it's a whole lot of fun - now that we're well and truly in on all of the inter-relationships between characters it's enjoyable just watching their reactions to developments, and although its melodrama is clichéd that doesn't stop it being great entertainment. On top of all that, the great thing is that all of the major characters are so likeable - as I mentioned last week, they're flawed and very human right down to the alien interloper, but they're all equally lovable in their own ways to leave you just as torn about who deserves a happy ending to this tale as those directly involved. No matter how things pan out, and even with its moments of fan service, I'm certainly deriving a vast amount of enjoyment from watching it happen at the moment as we reach the show's half-way point.